Ohne Titel. 1961.Mixed media. Wood, lacquer paint and paper on canvas. Signed lower right. Verso signed, dated and inscribed, partly in Japanese, as well as with an arrow indicating the direction. 96 x 73 cm (37.7 x 28.7 in). Works from Shimamoto's early period fo creation are in possession of, among others, the Tate Gallery, London and the Ashiya City Museum of Art & History, Japan.One of the artist's early works from the Gutai days, rare on the international auction market.Accompanied by a certficate issued by the Shozo Shimamoto Archive, Naples, from 4 July, 2015. The work is registered with the number 1337.

This work originates from Shimamoto's "Gutai" period, which occupies a central position in his artistic creation. Shimamoto illustrates the intuitive usage of color and material. The observer is confronted with an impressive colorrelief of a high plasticity, its massiveness even more increased by the combination of materials such as wood and paper. Shimamoto's art is the result of a very active process of creation, making it a sort of Japanese pendant to Jackson Pollock's American Action Painting. Sometimes performed in front of a live audience, Shimamoto's works are created in a kind of happening. Accordingly, they are documents of one of the most progressive creations of Japanese post-war art. Through the combination of painting, music, action and space it did not only pave the path for the Fluxus movement, but also served as a source of inspiration for artists such as Allan Kaprow and Nam June Paik.